Sixth-round pick Kevin Ellison will be on the field Friday for the Chargers' first full-squad workout after agreeing to a four-year, $1.85 million contract – with the same terms the team had been offering all week.

“I'm very happy that Jerome Stanley, his agent, and Kevin have accepted our contract,” General Manager A.J. Smith said. “It took a few extra days for them to mull it over, but it's now time for Kevin to go to work.

“Negotiations went great. I listened to Jerome, and he listened to me.”

Around the league, all four of the remaining unsigned sixth-rounders agreed to terms Wednesday. Ellison was technically the final one to do so.

The reality, however, is that he didn't miss much. Rookies, first-year players and a few veterans practiced the past three days. Today is an off-day, and the first full-squad workout is Friday.

Ellison is expected to battle Clinton Hart and Steve Gregory for playing time at strong safety. He impressed coaches and teammates in the offseason coaching sessions.

Stanley had been pushing for a three-year contract, and negotiations had reached an impasse by Tuesday. But Stanley reached out to the Chargers on Wednesday, accepting the four-year deal.

Less of Martin

Rookie defensive end Vaughn Martin spent the past month shedding the bulk of the 15 pounds he's lost since the draft and arrived in San Diego leaner and more cut.

“I'm still not svelte,” Martin said. “I've just heard training camp is the hardest thing you'll ever do, and I didn't want to compound the situation by coming in out of shape.”

The Chargers asked him to drop the weight, and he complied, getting down to 312 and pleasing Norv Turner with that ethic and his dedication to learning the playbook.

“A lot of young guys when they leave for a month, they don't retain much,” Turner said. “I think he's retained what he's been taught ... I've been impressed.”

Merriman reigns it in

Shawne Merriman spent a fair amount of time the past three days conferring between plays with athletic trainer James Collins.

Merriman, coming off major knee surgery, said it's a good way for him to keep himself in check and make sure he's “not going out and doing something crazy and hurting myself.”

He said he'll try to practice the next two or three weeks with a little in reserve so as not to rush back too quickly.

It's on

The past three days was a warm-up. Friday and the arrival of veterans on the field brings the intensity and competition.

Coaches couldn't help but size up the young players this week, but no decisions were made.